A FAMILY of three returning home after celebrating National Day in Putrajaya were among four people killed in an 11-vehicle crash on the East Coast Expressway near Lanchang last night.
The three were identified as Proton S70 driver Muhammad Nazatul Nazmi, 32, his wife Nur Atiqah Sofiya Mohd Kazwan, 32, and their four-year-old son, Muhammad Armaan Nazeef.
The fourth victim was Seow Beng Wain, 55, from Shah Alam, Selangor, who was travelling in a Honda CR-V driven by his 18-year-old son.
The crash occurred at about 10.55 pm at Km110.3 of the LPT eastbound and involved a tanker lorry carrying cement, an express bus and nine cars.
Acting Pahang police chief Datuk Azry Akmar Ayob said preliminary investigations showed that the tanker lorry had lost control before hitting several vehicles which were moving slowly.
The three members of the family were pronounced dead at the scene, as was Seow.
His son suffered serious injuries, while the tanker lorry driver, Zulkarnain Md Noh, 52, from Kuantan, was also seriously injured and taken to Hospital Sultan Haji Ahmad Shah (HoSHAH) in Temerloh.
Drivers and passengers from eight other vehicles, including the express bus and seven cars, suffered minor injuries and were taken to the same hospital.
Nur Atiqah Sofiya’s father, Mohd Kazwan Kassim, 59, said he was told about the accident at around 7.50 am today.
He said his daughter had shared photographs of herself with her husband and son at the National Day celebrations in Putrajaya in the family WhatsApp group yesterday.
“I did not know when they left for Putrajaya or when they started their journey home. I only heard about the accident at around 7.50 am this morning.
“I heard it from my daughter’s friends, but I still could not believe it until I saw the photographs on social media,” he said when met outside the forensic unit at HoSHAH.
Mohd Kazwan said Nur Atiqah Sofiya was the second of four siblings and ran Secangkir Cafe in Sungai Karang, Kuantan.
Muhammad Nazatul worked at a factory in Gebeng and was originally from Kuala Lumpur.
He said the family last met on Thursday as they lived near one another in Bandar Damansara, Kuantan.
The bodies of the three family members were washed, shrouded and prayed over at Kampung Paya Luas Mosque before being taken to Kuantan for burial at the Setali Muslim cemetery.
Police are investigating the case under Section 41(1) of the Road Transport Act 1987. – September 1, 2026